South Buffalo Charter School Plans to Build New Building | Families

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As it winds down its first decade of service to students from across Western New York, South Buffalo Charter School has begun the process of shaping the school’s future.

School officials announced today that South Buffalo Charter School has agreed to purchase a 26.6-acre parcel of land on which it plans to build a new school facility. The property, located at Mineral Springs Road and South Ogden Street in South Buffalo, gives the school necessary space to design and build a new campus that can accommodate an increased student population and provide students and teachers with a state-of-the-art learning environment.

“Our first ten years have been marked by significant success and a new facility will help us build upon that success in the way we serve our students,” said James Neimeier, President of the South Buffalo Charter School Board of Trustees. “Our current building presents certain logistical challenges, especially as our enrollment continues to grow.”

Since opening its doors for the 2000-2001 school year, South Buffalo Charter School has operated out of the former Buffalo Public School 29 located at 2219 South Park Avenue. The original portion of the building was built in 1906 and has been renovated to keep pace with growing enrollment. Approximately 670 students attend South Buffalo Charter School and the school has a waiting list of interested students at every grade level. More than 90 percent of the school’s current students live in the City of Buffalo, with many coming from the immediate South Buffalo area.

“By pursuing this project, we aim to create a more enriching experience for our students, provide our teachers and staff a more efficient work environment and to remain a strong anchor in the South Buffalo community,” said Carrie A. Dzierba, Head of Schools, South Buffalo Charter School. “The parents and families of our students have made a conscious choice to entrust South Buffalo Charter School with their children’s education. It is our mission as a school to deliver the maximum educational benefit in return for the trust placed in us.”

School officials will conduct a pre-development review of the site and begin the process for selecting design and construction teams over the summer. When completed, the plan is to break ground later this year, with the goal of opening the new building for the start of the 2013-2014 school year.

“We still have some hurdles to clear and a good deal of work ahead of us, but this is an exciting step for our entire school community,” Neimeier explained. “Our focus will be to meet the educational, teaching and social needs for the students, teachers and families who make up South Buffalo Charter School today and those we hope to welcome into our community in the years to come.”

Chartered in 2000, South Buffalo Charter School was the second charter school to open in the Buffalo area. Today, the school educates approximately 670 students in grades Kindergarten-8, offering them a comprehensive, enriching curriculum, including regular exposure to special subject areas such as Music, Art, Spanish and Technology.